


Re-Braiding Rope

by orphan_account



Category: Being Human (UK), The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Alternate Universe - Sentinels and Guides Are Known, And still Bragi, And still a Vampire, Anders is a Guide, Case Fic, M/M, Mitchell is a Sentinel, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Sentinel AU, Sentinel/Guide Bonding, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-02
Updated: 2016-08-25
Packaged: 2018-06-05 21:40:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6724615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mitchell is running - but, being a vampire and an Alpha Sentinel, he's never been terribly good at hiding.</p><p>Anders has spent his entire life making sure he wouldn't get chained to Guide Institute, with no hope of freedom or ever having a life outside of being a Guide.</p><p>One fateful day in the park changes everything.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sunday in the Park With Someone

The raven in Anders’ office looked increasingly harassed and Anders studiously ignored it. Anders always ignored spirit animals. Especially when he didn’t know who they belonged to. The last thing he wanted was to slip one day and end Bonded to some Sentinel he didn’t even know.

Anders wanted nothing to do with any kind of Bond at all. Ever.

So he continued to ignore the raven.

Long and dull, the morning dragged on. He’d already done all of the fun work, leaving him with the interminably long list of follow-up calls that he wanted nothing at all to do with. Just as he wanted nothing to do with the stupid fucking raven that  _ would not leave _ . It just stayed there. In his fucking office. Being  _ obnoxious _ . Every time Anders found the willpower to actually make a phone call, it would be there, on the edge of his vision, flapping around and flying into walls. 

Anders refused to acknowledge it. If he ignored it for long enough, then whoever it belonged to would hopefully move on, and the stupid thing would just  _ leave _ . He almost called Dawn in to check if she could see it, but he didn’t. He wasn’t willing to face the consequences if she couldn’t see it. She was no slouch of a guide herself, and if she couldn’t see it - Well. It didn’t matter. Because he was  _ ignoring the fucking raven _ .

It didn’t take long until Anders admitted defeat. Between the endless phone calls and the fucking bird that was  _ still _ in his office - and it had been  _ hours _ , why the fuck was it still there? He knew he wasn’t going to get any work done. He stuck his head out of his office and told Dawn that he was going off to lunch, and left before she could admonish him for poor work ethic.

It didn’t help when the fucking raven followed him outside. It followed him down the road. It followed him into the cafe, where he wound up getting a sandwich to take away. He couldn’t handle the bustle of the cafe, with the fucking raven constantly playing at the edges of his vision.

Anders had been able to convince himself that it didn’t matter. Seeing a soul animal absolutely did not mean that he was about to meet some kind of soul mate. He wasn’t. He did not have a sentinel bond because he did not want one. If he had been willing to enter a bond, he would have done so years ago. He would have stayed at home, with his three fucking Sentinel brothers. No, Anders was perfectly happy to be on his own, and perfectly happy to  _ stay _ that way.

The park turned out to be less than optimal, as there was only one bench in the shade, and it was taken up by slouched over lump of a man, Anders glared at him before sitting down at a bench in the sun. The raven was near frantic by this point, forgoing all the usual subtleties of soul animals.

‘Stop it!’ He hissed, finally acknowledging the stupid bird. It screeched at him and flapped in the direction of the man on the bench.

‘No.’ Anders said. Then he glanced over, and his heart sunk. His own lynx was on the man’s lap, and Anders was so,  _ so _ fucked. ‘No.’

He didn’t want a sentinel, he didn’t want a bond!

But the man...hadn’t moved. At all. He sat eerily still, and as much as Anders wanted to deny it, he could feel the pull. It didn’t have to be a bond, but the sentinel was clearly in a Zone. As much as Anders tried to stay out of the life, there were some guide instincts that he couldn’t ignore.

Anders moved slowly as he walked over to the bench. He could see the man had his fingers twined into his hair, pulling hard enough his knuckles were white from it. An uneasy feeling spread through Anders when he realized that the man had probably been zoned all morning. Sick urgency crashed through his system. If a Sentinel was left in a Zone too long, they could get stuck there. If this man had already been zoned for the better part of the morning...he had no time.

He rushed to the park bench and skidded to his knees, never even thinking of the possible damage to his suit. The man’s eyes were clenched tightly shut. The raven settled on the back of the bench and screeched. Anders glared at it. ‘Not helping.’ He told it sternly before turning back to the zoned sentinel. He reached up and covered the man’s hands  with his own. ‘Can you feel that?’ He kept his voice soft. He didn’t know what senses the sentinel had, but whatever they were all sure to be haywire if he’d been zoned this long. ‘I want you to focus on my voice. Can you do that?’ Anders reached out with his guide empathy, immediately finding the most ragged remains of shields that he’d ever seen. ‘Hey, it’s alright. I’m here now, and we’re going to put you back together. It’s all going to be just fine, just listen to my voice.’

The man was shattered beyond anything that Anders had ever encountered before. The idea of pulling him out of a zone was a daunting one, but the thought of leaving him was completely unacceptable. Slowly, Anders picked up the wrecked pieces of the sentinels shields, projecting a bubble around the both of them, wrapping them both in the thickest layers of silence that he could manage. ‘Is that any better? I want you to focus on me, hear my voice. Is it loud? I don’t know where you are.’

The man let out a whine and curled further in on himself.

‘It’s alright.’ Anders said, keeping his voice calm and smooth, pushing his empathy into it. ‘Just dial it back. Imagine that you’re sitting a car. You’ve just turned it on, and everything is too loud, but it’s okay, you just turn it all down. Just dial it back.’

The man had started to tremble, perhorrescing beneath Anders’ gentle grip. Anders had to fight down the rising panic that he might still lose this sentinel.

‘Hey, hey, you’re alright, just turn it down, one at a time, alright? Just focus on my voice and turn everything else off. Just be here with me. Can you feel my hands? The bench you’re sitting on?’

The man let out a long, shuddering breath, and his hands started to loosen in his hair.

‘Good, good! Okay, I’m guessing you’ve got sight too, so let’s work on that next, okay? I know it’s bright out, but you can turn it down. Just use that same dial you had before. Your colour balance is off, that’s all. Imagine a blank piece of paper, and you’re gonna shade it grey, alright? Dim it down, you’ve got it.’

The tension faded from the man’s face, and Anders decided to take a risk. ‘Okay, I was guessing on sound and sight, but I don’t know what else you’ve got? Do you think you can nod for me? Or blink maybe?’

The man’s eyes opened, and Anders almost stumbled back in shock at the sight of pure black eyes. He had to push the panic down, he couldn’t leave. Not when the sentinel still needed his help. ‘Ah. Wasn’t expecting that. Uh.’

The man shut his eyes again and whimpered.

‘Right, okay. Blink if we work on smell next.’

The man managed to blink once before squeezing his eyes back shut.

Anders rolled his shoulders and got back to work. He didn’t know how long he spent on his knees, slowly talking down the zoned out sentinel through all five senses. He just knew he was aching and exhausted. The sentinel was even worse off, weak and barely able to stay awake.

‘Ugh, fuck but you’re a lot of work.’ Anders said, getting to his feet and ignoring the painful creak in his knees. ‘Do you have a name?’

The man blinked up at him, clearly having trouble keeping his eyes open. He slurred out something that seemed be some kind of question.

‘Your  _ name. _ I can’t call Dawn and tell her I’m taking care of a nameless sentinel I found in the park.’

‘Mitchell.’

‘Great, well, Mitchell, we’re going to walk over to the curb, and then your job is to stay awake long enough for me to get my car and come back, do you think you can do that?’

‘Hnnnng.’

‘You’re fucking unhelpful.’ Anders pulled his phone from his pocket. He winced. He had six missed calls from Dawn. He rang her up.

‘Where have you been, I thought-’

‘I found a zoned sentinel in the park.’

‘Oh, god, Anders!’

‘We’re both fine but I need you to bring the car around.’

‘Absolutely.’ Dawn said, and Anders could hear her grabbing her keys and her coat.

‘You’re a lifesaver, Dawnsie.’

‘Where do I find you?’

Anders gave her directions to the nearest corner, before turning back to Mitchell. ‘Our chariot is on it’s way, so you’re going to have to come with me.’

‘No, I can’t, I shouldn’t - I’ve got people-’

‘Where do you live.’

Mitchell’s mouth dropped open and he blinked a few times.

‘Do you have food there?’

Mitchell let out a noise that was nowhere close to words.

‘Yeah, no. You’re coming with me.’

‘No, I can’t-’

‘Look. I’m going to assume that you’re not from around here, but let me tell you a secret. Around here, no fucking guide is going to leave a sentinel alone in your state. To be perfectly clear, it actually happens to be illegal, and seeing as how the absolute last thing I ever want to do is get involved with the Institute, I’m going to take you home until I believe you can walk a block without falling down, got it?’

‘I don’t-’

‘Great. So glad we had this conversation. Now get your arse up.’ Anders grabbed Mitchell’s arm and hauled him up. It took everything Anders had to keep them both standing. Mitchell could barely support his own weight, Anders could feel him shaking under the strain of being upright. ‘It’s not much of a walk. Just over to the corner there, see?’

Mitchell grunted and gritted his teeth, but managed to put one foot in front of the other.

Dawn was waiting for them by the car by the time they reached the kerb. They managed to get Mitchell into the back seat, and he was asleep by the time that Dawn pulled into traffic.

‘Anders, what-’

‘I found him in the park.’

‘I thought you didn’t want to be involved.’

‘I don’t, but I wasn’t about to let him fucking zone out in the park!’

‘You could have called.’

‘Dawn.’ Anders said in a tone that clearly shut down that line of conversation. ‘You know how I feel about the Institute.’

Dawn sighed and nodded. ‘I’m not the Institute though, alright? Remember that.’

Anders rolled his eyes.

‘You call me if you need help.’

‘Just - keep an ear out. I’ve stayed off their radar this long-’

‘Right. I’ll try to send them in the wrong direction if anyone comes asking around.’

‘Thank you.’ Anders said with palpable relief in his voice.

‘You’re taking him to your place?’

‘He couldn’t even tell me where his place was.’

‘Do you know anything about him at all?’

‘He’s got all five senses.’

Dawn turned to him in shock. ‘What?’

‘I know.’

‘Anders, if he’s not bonded-’

‘He can’t stand on his own.’

‘He’s going to get better.’

‘And I’m going to kick him out before it becomes a problem.’

Dawn frowned. ‘I’ll bring Ty around.’

‘No.’ Anders said firmly. ‘Not a good idea. I don’t know anything about him.’

‘Which is why you need us.’

‘Which is why you will stay the fuck out of it, unless I call you.’

‘Anders.’

‘Dawn.’

‘Fine.’ Dawn said. ‘But you will call me if you need anything.’

Anders sighed. ‘I will call you if I need anything.’

Dawn pulled into the parking lot by his flat. Mitchell was passed out in the back seat. ‘Are you going to need help getting him in?’

Anders paused for a moment. ‘Shut up.’

Dawn giggled and smacked him in the shoulder. ‘Alright then. Let’s get Mitchell into the house.’

They did manage to partially wake Mitchell up, but it was still a struggle to get him out of the car and into the flat. Anders put down a fresh sheet on the couch, and then they let Mitchell collapse

‘So you’ve got a sentinel in your living room.’ Dawn said, raising an eyebrow.

‘If you say one more word, I’ll fire you.’

‘I’ll be by tomorrow morning with food.’ She said, making her way out the door.

‘You’re the best!’ 

‘And don’t you forget it!’

The door closed behind her and in the silence, it began to truly sink in. Anders had a sentinel in his flat. He crossed the room to his fridge and pulled out a bottle of vodka. There was no way to avoid it. His life had just got far more complicated.


	2. First Awakening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mitchell wakes up, and the boys have half a chat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! It's come to my attention that maybe not everyone is super familiar with Sentinal/Guide stuff, so the lovely [ msilverstar ](http://archiveofourown.org/users/msilverstar/pseuds/msilverstar%22) has sent me[ this wonderful link ](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Sentinel) to the fanlore wiki.
> 
> \- that being said, this is really going to be a truly excellent mushing together of different mythologies. So, Gods and Vampires and Sentinels, oh my! 
> 
> Basically, my M.O. is to reject your reality and substitute my own. ...er. Canon. I meant to say *canon* there. ;)
> 
>  
> 
> Un-beta'd, so if you catch anything, please let me know, constructive criticism always welcome!

 

Mitchell woke up slow. For the first time in longer than he cared to remember, there was no pounding headache of sensory overload. He didn’t bother to open his eyes, just pressed his face deeper into the soft, unscented sheet he was on.

Then he remembered. Unscented bliss meant he had sleeping somewhere not his house. Not his bed, not his life. He tried to remember...anything, but everything was blurry. He shrunk in on himself, realizing what that meant. He must have zoned out.

Like an electric shock, his mind caught up with himself and he sat bolt upright, with panic rushing through him. If he was on Sentinel-grade unscented sheets, it could only mean that he’d been caught and brought in, and he couldn’t be in the institute.

The institute wouldn’t believe him, and he had to- A hand appeared on his shoulder, and waves of cool calm seemed to wash over him.

‘You, my friend, need to chill the fuck out.’

Mitchell could only gasp for breath, now that his chest wasn’t frozen in fear.

‘Seriously, you’re starting to cramp my style and I’ve only known you for about a day.’

Mitchell blinked, looking around for the first time at the room he was in. The clean, modern lines, dark wood and bright metal, the bubbling of the brightly lit fish-tank that seemed to be the center-point of the room. Finally he looked up at the Guide who was standing next to him.

The instinctive wave of need started to rise up, but he pushed it down ruthlessly. He did not get to have a Guide, he reminded himself. He could not protect them. Anyone who got too close- and the thought floated away, as if Mitchell were in a boat that had just been gently launched from shore.

‘Look, I’m serious. You’re a lot of fucking work and I don’t want you in my house.’

It took a few moments for Mitchell to his find his voice, and even when he did it was shaky and rough. ‘You’re- you’re not Institute?’

‘Does this look Institute to you?’ Anders scoffed, but then turned serious. ‘I would, however, like to keep it that way, and having a mega-powerful Sentinel spiking all over my shit isn’t going to help me with that.’

Despite his words, he was still pushing out a bubble around the two of them, infusing it with the most powerful thoughts of safety and relaxation that he could. There was a line he wasn’t going to cross - he absolutely did not want to bond with this Sentinel! But there was something about Mitchell’s fear, the instinctive way he that he wore it; the weary cast of it, like coat he’d forgotten how to take off. It gave Anders a sick, roiling feeling in his stomach. He'd be fucked though before he was going let a freaked-out sentinel put him off breakfast - or, at least, that’s what Anders was telling himself - so instead, Anders flooded the room with his empathy, pushing out thoughts of safety and security - and it was all true.

Anders had one of the safest flats in the city. He had to, to keep himself and his sentinel brothers out of the eyes of the institute. It did, however, mean that there was nowhere better in Auckland for an unregistered Sentinel to get back on his feet.

The sweet, easy calm that the Guide exuded was intoxicating, addicting, Mitchell could feel his eyes slip shut as he let it sink into him and soothe the burning fear that seemed to be a part of his very blood. It was so hard not to let go, so hard not let his thoughts stray to the steady warmth of the hand on his shoulder. How sweet it would be, how the deep-set ache in his chest seemed to have completely disappeared… but that was why. Mitchell drew himself together and shook off the Guide’s hand.

‘I have to go.’

‘Yeah, you do.’ Anders agreed, but he gave Mitchell a pointedly condescending look, ‘First though, you’re going to sleep a bit more, and when Dawn gets here, you’re going to have a feed-’

‘Someone else knows I’m here?’

Anders rolled his eyes and pushed another wave of calm at the distraught and stroppy sentinel. ‘Yeah. Dawn. She picked us up yesterday. She drove us here?’

Mitchell stared at him blankly.

Anders sighed. ‘Yeah, okay. You were pretty out of it, I’ll give you that.’ He paused and then gave Mitchell a questioning look. ‘You remember who I am?’

Mitchell frowned, and tried to think back. Still nothing. The Hunters, and then, iron, it had been the scent of iron, so strong he could taste it, feel the slick of blood on his hands, the crimson colour of it against his skin-

Then Anders hand was back on his shoulder, shaking him firmly. ‘Okay, look, wherever you were going just then? You don’t fucking go there again!’ Anders rolled his eyes. ‘Fuck’s sake, what were you trying to do, re-live your fucking zone out?’

Mitchell stared.

Ander’s mouth dropped open. ‘You can’t possibly be that useless. Seriously? Everyone knows that.’ He paused, but his disbelief didn’t allow him to stay quiet. ‘Everyone knows that! What the fuck is wrong with you?’

Mitchell clenched his jaw and glared. ‘It’s usually not a problem.’

‘Yeah right. Pull the other one.’ Anders said. ‘Now, since the _enormous_ task of _all_ of  yesterday seems to be more than you can take, let’s start small. You remember me?’

‘I remember you’re a fuckin’ arse.’ Mitchell grumbled.

‘I am standing right here you know.’ Anders said. ‘So. Do you remember me at all?’

Mitchell glared at him for another moment before he turned his eyes to the fishtank and though back. He’d been...in the park. He’d managed to get away, get to where he couldn’t hurt anyone. The rage in his blood was more than he could handle, so he’d ran, and wound up...somewhere. The sun had been painfully bright, everything had been too loud, the air was sweet and earthy, it tastes like pollen and pollution, and Mitchell had no idea how long he’d been there. He’d been waving in and out, caught by the heartbeats of people walking by, the scent of grass being crushed beneath their feet, the smell of petrol from the cars on the street, and below it all had been the salty tang of ocean air that never seemed to go away in New Zealand.

Mitchell had been out in it, sinking into it, and there had been...something soft. Something warm, yet cool, living, but with no heartbeat. It had curled under his hands when he was sitting on the painfully hard wood of the park bench.

Then there had been a voice, soothing and golden. A thread that pulsed with a welcoming light, drawing him away from the burning sun and the roar of the wind and spicy bite of the blooming flowers. It had been like slipping into a warm pool of the finest oil, golden and clear, letting it fill his mouth until he could no longer taste the sweat of the people walking by. Sliding deeper until his nose was filled with it, it had plugged his ears from the unending din of the city. Sinking deeper so it filtered out the painful blue light of the sun.

The thing in his hands had been...a cat of some sort. A wildcat.

But spirit animals only appeared to Bond partners, and so Mitchell pushed that thought down.

He looked up and frowned. ‘There was a voice... _you_ , but..’ he trailed off and shook his head.

Anders wasn’t particularly happy about the information, but he wasn’t particularly surprised, either. ‘Right, well. In case you’d forgotten, I’m Anders.’ He sighed. ‘I’m a Guide, and by New Zealand law, I’m not allowed to abandon you in a public space if I see you. However!’ He met Mitchell’s eyes and glared for a moment, ‘I am not, as you have probably noticed, a part of the Institute. And I have worked very hard to be that way, and I intend to _stay_ that way, so. You are going to do everything I tell you to do until you are well enough to leave, and then I expect to never see you again. Understand?’

‘Anders.’ Mitchell said. It sounded a bit familiar, he must have learned it the day before. He frowned and shook his head. ‘I can’t stay, I have to go.’

Anders sent him an unimpressed look. ‘Fine, by all means! If you can make it to the door without falling over, you are more than welcome to leave.’

Mitchell frowned at Anders flippant sarcasm, but then took stock. He was already starting to feel a bit dizzy just from sitting up. He curled his toes in his shoes, and he could feel the shaky weakness of his muscles. He turned to Anders, eyes wide. ‘How long was I out for yesterday?’

Any trace of humour left Anders face. He shook his head. ‘I don’t know.’ He pointedly didn’t mention getting harassed by the raven. ‘I don’t know how long you were there, but you were in a pretty bad way by the time I got to you.’

Mitchell nodded slowly then stared at his hands as the reality of it sunk in. He had almost died. That wasn’t the kind of zone that anyone could have pulled him out of. His instincts were screaming at him, he could feel the tug of a Bond starting at the back of his mind, and he forced himself to ignore all of it. Anders did not want to Bond. Mitchell didn’t either. He bit his lip. He wasn’t willing to go down that road again. It didn’t matter how right it might feel, or that Anders could pull him back from the brink of complete mental shut down. He took a slow breath. ‘Thank you.’

‘What?’

‘I think we both know that I’d be terminally catatonic if you hadn’t helped.’ Mitchell said, ‘So thank you. I know it’s the law, but you could have left me there.’

Anders took a step back, suddenly needing physical distance between himself and the sentinel on his couch. ‘Uh, I couldn’t have.’ He paused, worry threading through him. There was a connection there, with the sentinel, with Mitchell, but Anders didn’t want it. He’d spent his entire life managing to stay out of a Sentinel Bond. He wasn’t going to fall into one with a homeless bum he’d found on a park bench.

He drew Bragi into his voice. ‘That park is one of my favourites, and it’s on my way home. If you’d gone catatonic there, I never would have been able to go there again, because the Institute would be watching it, and the other way home is about twice as long. It had nothing to do with you. I just don’t want to have to find a new shortcut home.’

Mitchell frowned as Anders spoke, something had changed in how he spoke, something in the words, some tone to it that he couldn’t parse. He tried to listen, but he hit a wall, like everything was through cotton. He blinked up slowly at Anders and suddenly even sitting up was taking more energy than he had. Exhaustion pulled at every fibre of his being. ‘Ehm…’ He said intelligently, ‘I, ah…’

Then Anders hands were back on his shoulders, lowering him gently down to the couch. Mitchell tried to keep his eyes open, but then there was Ander’s voice. It was thick and sweet, but not like it had been before. There was no echo in it, no whisper of centuries. It was just Anders, and a wave of something that felt like comfort, telling him he was safe, and to go back to sleep.

Mitchell tried to fight it, he had to go. The hunters were only getting farther away, and he had to keep people safe! But...he’d been fighting for so long. The warmth seemed to curl through his ribs to wrap around his fingertips, and he couldn’t remember the last time when he hadn’t been cold.

Anders pushed one more time, and Mitchell slept.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have any burning questions that need answers, or you just want to chat, please let me know! [ My tumblr ](http://taupefox59.tumblr.com/)is always open!


	3. Conversations Over Breakfast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dawn comes over, and we learn a bit about differing opinions on the Institute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Un-beta'd, so if you catch anything, please let me know! Constructive criticism always welcome! <3

Anders stared a moment at the Sentinel on his couch. It had been hard not feel how exhausted Mitchell was, once Anders had started pushing. He’d only meant to put Mitchell into a light doze, but once he’d started, it had been so easy to just...push a bit further. Anders did admit that he might have done a bit much when putting the sentinel under, but…

‘Fuck.’ He said to himself.  He needed a drink. Not to notice how the raven had curled into the space by Mitchell’s shoulder and actually tucked it’s fucking head under the Sentinel’s chin. Or how his own lynx looked extremely tempted to go join them. He glared at the cat, as if it needed to be reminded how much a bond was  _ not _ something they wanted.

The lynx glared back for a moment before slinking into the kitchen. Anders sighed. Even his own soul-animal was angry with him. It didn’t matter. It was hardly a change from any other time when everyone managed to be angry at him. His fucking lynx hadn’t been happy about Helen either, not that it had mattered at all. 

A wave of  _ something _ came over Anders when he thought of Helen, put he pushed it away. He wasn’t going to think about it. It wouldn't help anyone, and it certainly wouldn’t make Helen any less fucking dead. He shook his head. Nope, he needed vodka.

He’d just managed to sit down at the table with his bottle and down a shot or two when there was a knock on the door. ‘Fuck’, he said, slamming his shot glass on the table. He’d forgotten about Dawn. He put the vodka away on his way to the door. The last thing he needed was more fucking judgement. It was far too early in the morning for that shit.

He let her in, and she had her arms full of two giant bags of incredible smelling food.

‘Think you got enough?’ Anders asked, raising an eyebrow.

‘To feed a starving Sentinel?’ Dawn said drily, ‘I honestly thought about going back for more.’

Anders shook his head but conceded her point.

‘Where is he?’ she asked, settling the bags on the kitchen counter

‘He’s still on the couch.’

‘He’s still asleep?’

‘He woke up for a bit.’

Dawn frowned at that. ‘Anders…’

‘It’s fine!’

‘It isn’t fine! You have an unknown Sentinel in your house!’

‘And I can handle him!’

‘You said he has all five senses.’

‘I can still handle him.’

‘If he tries to bond-’

‘I can take care of it!’ Anders snapped, clearly out of patience. He was tired and unsettled. 

The problem was that he  _ could _ handle it. He had never met another Guide that came even close to his level of power and control. He knew without a doubt that he was the most powerful guide in New Zealand. That fact was why it was so incredibly important for him to hide. He knew if he wound up at the Institute he’d be given away to the most powerful Sentinel they had on hand, regardless of if they even liked each other. It was no secret that the Institute was always looking for powerful guides. The only way for Anders to stay in control of his own life was to keep his head down and stay off the radar.

Which is why he had to get Mitchell out of his house as soon as possible, regardless of the instinctive pull he felt. He had to push it all down, fucking snuff it out, and stay focused on what mattered. He liked his life. He wasn’t about to let himself get pulled in to a bond with a homeless Sentinel who obviously couldn’t take care of himself.

‘Anders. I don’t understand why you’re keeping him here. Let me take him. I can turn him into the institute, that’s what they’re  _ for _ .’ 

‘Absolutely not.’ Ander’s voice was sharp and cold.

‘What are you so afraid of?’ Dawn finally snapped. She knew that the entire family had grown up avoiding the Institute, but she had not. She had registered as a guide when she turned 21, as was officially required. When she’d bonded with Ty, she’d registered that as well. 

She had hoped that Ty’s positive experience - or at least, the complete lack of a negative experience - would help the rest of the Johnson boys to get over their ingrained fear of the Institute. After all, the Institute was in place to protect Sentinels and Guides. It was built as a sanctuary, meant to be a place for Guides and Sentinels to find each other, and to foster more Bonded pairs within the community. It also had special resources for zoned out Sentinels or Guides who over-tapped their empathy. Dawn herself had never had any reason to use any of those services, but she’d met plenty who had. None of them had ever come out worse for wear. 

It was true that the atmosphere within Institute facilities was very much geared toward pushing people to Bond, Dawn wasn’t naive enough to think otherwise. There was a reason that the required age for registration was 21. 

But the Institute wasn’t some monolithic match-making machine. Of course they would push people of similar power ranges together, but that was simply smart match-making. Guides and Sentinels needed to care for each other, to balance each other out. If the power balance was too skewed then one or both of them could get lost to their own abilities.

Ty was on the books as a registered Sentinel. It had been a late registration, but the Institute hadn’t even asked questions. Even though it was technically a requirement to register, there had been no penalties whatsoever. Ty was an Institute Official Sentinel with an officially sanctioned Bond.

It had done nothing to dissuade the fear in the rest of the Johnsons though, and Dawn  _ did not understand. _

‘Dawn.’ Anders said, cool and clipped, yet somehow heavy and hypnotic. ‘You will not bring Mitchell to the attention of the Institute for any reason at all.’

Dawn frowned. She could tell that Anders was using his empathy on her, but there was something to it, velvety and soothing that slipped into her mind. Still, she fought it.

‘If I do it, you don’t even need to go in. It won’t have anything to do with you.’

Anders cursed under his breath. He knew that Dawn didn’t get it, had never seen what the Institute did to people with too much power. People who might even be deemed ‘dangerous to society’. Nearly everyone within the God community that he’d met had been either Sentinel or Guide, and nearly all of them were unregistered. Dawn didn’t know that Michelle was on the inside, doing her best to keep the Gods away from the attention of anyone with power.

 

Helen had been one of the few in the system, and she had never recovered. She’d been discovered when she was only a child, pushed into the Institution-approved adoption program. Her life had been systematically taken away from her and destroyed until her only option had been to run. She had managed to escape by the time that she had become Idunn’s vessel, but by then the damage had already been done. She had already been trained in the belief that her only role was to find her Guide and to settle down with them. Having Idunn had helped to counter the brainwashing, but then she’d found Anders and then…

 

Anders sneered. Fucking gods. 

 

He drew Bragi deeper into his voice and pushed harder at Dawn’s shields. “You will not do anything to attract the attention of the Institute.”

‘I want to keep you safe!’ Dawn protested. She could feel her conviction wavering, though she kept the warning tone in her voice.  When she saw the look on his face, she knew the best plan was to drop the conversation - at least for the time being. She pursed her lips. Anders could claim to take care of himself all he wanted, but she had her reasons for doubt. Thoughts of Helen crowded her mind, the way that they had never bonded, but the way that the relationship had spun out, twisting everything. The way that Anders had caved to the slightest suggestion from Helen. Helen had been a sentinel, but she’d only had one enhanced sense. Dawn had never understood what the draw had been. 

Near the end Dawn had been closer and closer to turning Anders in to the Institute for his own safety. The relationship he had with Helen had been nothing close to what usually happened with a bond. It was like they had hypnotized each other, like they were high on each other. Usually a bond made people sharper, balanced them out. Helen and Anders had seemed to spiral into each other. Dawn didn’t understand how it had worked.

Then Helen had died, and Dawn had been the one to watch as Anders pretended that he had never felt anything at all. It had been ugly business from the start to the finish, and Dawn was certain that Anders had still never spoken to anyone about it.

All he did was close himself off, and become even more adamant that he was never going to bond with a Sentinel. Dawn would never pretend not to worry. Especially now. ‘I don’t have to tell the Institute. Just let me bring Ty around-’

‘No!’ Panic made Anders voice ring through the flat. He didn’t know how to explain it, but his family couldn’t be get involved. Mitchell was too fragile by far. The Sentinel on his couch was hanging on by ragged threads, and Anders knew that he couldn’t be involved in anything that pushed Mitchell any closer to the edge than he already was. He also knew that he couldn’t explain how nervous it made him feel. It was far closer than he wanted to be. It was something to do with instinct and compatibility that Anders didn’t want to think about. Whatever was drawing them together that Anders was forcing himself to ignore. The reason that Anders could see Mitchell’s raven, and Mitchell could clearly see Anders lynx. It wasn’t supposed to happen, and Anders wasn’t going to let it happen.

He was going to get Mitchell back on his feet, and then he was going to be dumping the Sentinel out, and doing everything possible to insure that their paths were never to cross again.

 

It would be in the best interests for everyone.

 

‘Dawn.’ Anders fed his power into his voice, leaning on his empathy and pulling on Bragi, ‘I do not want this sentinel in my flat. I don’t want any sentinels in my house. You are not going to call anyone, because I am kicking him out as soon as he wakes up. Calling anyone will just make more people ask questions. The fewer people who know, the safer we all are.’

Dawn frowned but nodded. ‘I won’t tell anyone.’

‘Not even Ty.’ Anders said, and he could tell from the dazed look in her eyes that she was under his influence.

She blinked. ‘Ty already knows. I told him yesterday.’

‘You will tell him not to come here, because it’s all taken care of. When he asks, that’s what you’re going to tell him. That everything has been taken care of.’

She nodded slowly.

‘He’s leaving as soon as he wakes up.’ Anders repeated. ‘So there’s no reason for anyone to worry. He’ll go away and then we can all forget this ever happened.’

‘Forget?’

‘There’s nothing to remember at all. Nothing special. Just someone passing through who we’ll never see again.’ Anders could feel her hesitation, but he barrelled down on her, he could feel the smooth oil of Bragi slipping through the cracks in her shields and seeping into her mind. If he did his job right, she wouldn’t remember anything odd about their interactions, wouldn’t think about it at all unless Mitchell showed up again. He hated fucking with Dawn. She was too close, and she was actually his friend. But sometimes she got caught up in things that were better for her to not be a part of. ‘You should go now. I have everything in control here, and I’m sure you have work at the office.’

Anders ignored his conscience as he convinced Dawn to get out of the flat and head to the office. She really did need to be there, after all, because he certainly wouldn’t be going in that day. Not when he had a shattered Sentinel that needed to be put together.

 

And he would. He would help Mitchell get his shit together, and then kick that motherfucker back out to wherever he fucking came from.

Anders sighed and shook his head. Sentinels were always way more trouble than they were worth. He cast his Empathy out to check on Mitchell, but the sentinel was deep in peaceful slumber. Anders left his shields down a bit so that he could better monitor if Mitchell started to wake up at all, then turned to the giant bags of food that Dawn had brought. 

He was going to let Mitchell sleep as long as possible, but there was no reason to let all of the food that Dawn had brought over get completely cold.

With a stupidly powerful Sentinel passed out on his couch, and two soul-animals that Anders was  _ definitely _ ignoring, he got the vodka back out of the freezer and tucked in to a marvelous breakfast.


End file.
